In industry it is frequently important to be able to separate oil and water flowing comingled in a stream. In some instances the comingled oil and water is in the form of an emulsion. A standard technique for separating oil and water is to pass the comingled stream into a separating vessel wherein a quiescent zone is established so that oil, being of lower specific gravity than water, rises. After sufficient time the emulsion will eventually separate into its two major components of water and oil. However, some comingled streams are so tenaciously emulsified that even after relatively long quiescent periods, the water and oil remains unseparated.
In order to assist in separating oil and water it is a typical practice to heat the emulsion. As the temperature of the emulsion increases the water and oil more readily separate. However, in some instances even heating the emulsion is not sufficient to permit complete separation of the water and oil.